Air conditioning



Och 8y 1940- N. J. URQUHART AIR CONDITIONING Filed Jan. 12, 19:59

2 Sheets-Sheet l mmf 'rs 1NVENTOR. j/f/af/ @Maffia/7L BY ATTORNEY;

N. J.. URQU HART AIR CONDITIONING Filed Jan. l2, 1939 I v .no

2 sheets-sneer 2v 1N VENTOR,

ATTORNEY.

Patented Oct. 8, 1940 PATENT: oFFlCE *#2,217,190 n Am `ooNnITIQNINGv Norman J. Urquhart, East Lansing, Mich., assignor to Humidex Corporation, ,a corporation of Application January 12, iesafserial No.y 250,548r- 4. claims, (C1. 257-121) This invention yrelates, to airv cooling apparatus and has for its primary-objectto coolair by transferring heat therefrom to the low temperature earth at or beneath the water table. The apparatus is adaptable for cooling, almost any kind of' a building and for other purposes.

Another object is to provide an air cooling system embodying conduits located beneath the surface of the earth, for receiving warm air from- 10 a building, for dissipating heat from the air into the earth, and for returning the air to the.

buliding at a substantially reduced temperature. More particularly it is an object of this invention to teach how to obtain heat conductive con- 15- tact between conduits andearth in suchrmanner that large and continuous flow of uid through conduits may be cooled.

Under seasonal or climatic condiitons resulting in air temperatures approaching 90 F. a wide 20 temperature variance exists between the air and the earth below the water table which is at approximately 50 F. The earth above the water table, being unsaturated, is at a higher temperature than that below the water table, and ordinarily is a poor heat conductor. Therefore, an air circulating system located in the earth above the water table is not capable of dissipating heat as rapidly as one located beneath the water table. However, due to the depth of an excavation necessary to place an air circulating system beneath the water table level, such procedure is, in some cases, impractical. This invention has for another object to teach the manner in which an air circulating system may be located in the earth above the water table and the heat transferred from the air and conducted to and dissipated vin the earth below the water table.

Another object is to provide. a system of air conveyors for receiving air from a building and 40 for returning it to the building at a lower temperature, said system including conduits located at a comparatively shallow depth in the earth and means for saturating the earth immediately adjacent thereto and the earth therebeneath ex- 45 tending to the water table, to provide for the transfer of heat from the air and the dissipation thereof in the earth below the water table.

Other objects and advantages will become more fully apparent as reference is had to the 50 accompanying drawings wherein my invention is illustrated, and in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevation of a building and the present underground circulatingvsystem, the surrounding earth being illustrated in section,

55 Fig. 2 is a View taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1,

Figs.v 3 and 4 are sections taken on the lines d 3 3 and 4 4, respectively, of Fig.` 2 and Figs. .and 6 are sections ytaken on the lines 5 5 and 6 6, respectively, of Fig. 3.

V From a basement wall of the building I extends `a concrete structurehaving a portion 2 perpendicular to the wall and lateral extensions 3 vandl4,'the concrete mix from which the structure is formed being such that the concrete is porous to enable water to readily permeate the same. Within the, building I is a housing 5 havingy an air inlet 6 and an air outlet 'I separated byva vertical partition 8. `The partition 8 is in line with the end of the portion 2 and two parallel sets of conduits 9 and I0 extend from opposite sides of the partition 8 to a housing II located at the juncture of the portion 2 and the lateral extensions 3 and 4.

Two parallel sets of conduits I2 and I3 extend through the lateral extension 3 and connect the housing II with a hollow housing I4 disposed in the extremity of said extension. A similar pair of conduits I5 and I6 extend through the lateral extension 4 and connect the other side of the housing II with a hollow housing I'I located in the extremity of the lateral extension 4.

Within the housing I I is a vertical .cylinder I8 and two partitions I9 and 20 arranged to direct air entering the housing II from the conduits 9 into the conduits I2, which convey such air to the housing I4. Within the housing I4 is a cylinder 2| and a partition 22 arranged to direct air from the conduits I2 to the conduits I3, which convey it to the housing I I. A third partition 23 coacts with the cylinder I3 and the partition I9 to direct air from the conduits I3 into the conduits I6, which convey the air to the housing I'I. A cylinder 24 and a partition 25 in the housing I1 direct the air from the conduits I6 to the conduits I5, which convey the air to the housing I0. The cylinder I8 and the partitions I9 and 23 within the housing I0 direct air from the .conduits I5 to the conduits I0 which convey the air to the housing 5 on the outlet side of the partition 8.

From the foregoing it becomes apparent that air entering the housing 5 is circulated outwardly through the portion 2, outwardly o-f the lateral extension 3, inwardly of the extension 3 and outwardly of the extension '4, and then inwardly of the extension 4 and portion 2 to the outlet side of the housing 5. The concrete from which theportion 2 and extensions 3 and 4 is constructed will be at a temperature lower than the normal air temperature, and, therefore, heat will be transferred from the air passing therethrough and dissipated in the surrounding earth.

Extending through the portion 2 and the lateral extensions 3 and 4 are Water connected pipes 26, and a Water control means of the float valve type is diagrammatically illustrated at 21 for maintaining said pipes partially filled With Water at all times. The pipes 26 may be of tile capable of discharging water at intervals or throughout their entire length, or they may be perforate tubes as illustrated in Fig. 4.

Water is continuously discharged from the pipes 26 to maintain the concrete from which the portion 2 and extensions 3 and 4 are formed in a saturated condition. The water which permeates the concrete saturates the earth immediately adjacent the sides thereof, and saturates the earth beneath the concrete to the depth of the water table. This saturated earth comprises a much more highly ecient heat conductor than the unsaturated earth and makes possible rapid dissipation of the heat from the air passing through the system.

In the event that moisture contained in the air condenses in the conduits, the same may be removed by any suitable drainage means. For example, in Fig. 3 a water collector 28 adjacent the ends of the tubes 9 has an outlet 29 which is adapted to extend to a point of disposal,

What is claimed is:

l. An air cooling system comprising a permeable concrete structure imbedded in and extending a substantial distance beneath the earth surface, a system of conduits in said concrete for receiving air from a building and for returning it thereto, and means for maintaining said concrete in a saturated condition throughout substantially the entire length thereof.

2. An air cooling sysem comprising imperforate conduits for receiving air from a building and for returning the air to the building, a concrete casing incasing said conduits, said lconduits and casing being imbedded in and extending a substantial distance beneath the surface of the earth, the concrete of said casing being permeable, and means for saturating said casing.

3. An air cooling system comprising imperforate conduits for receiving air from a building and for returning the air to the building, a concrete casing incasing said conduits, said conduits and casing being imbedded in and extending a substantial distance beneath the surface of the earth, the concrete of said casing being permeable, and perforate conduits paralleling the imperforate conduits and adapted to convey water for saturating said casing and the earth therebeneath to the depth of the water table.

4. An air cooling system comprising an air inlet and an air outlet, parallel air conduits extending respectively from the inlet and the outlet for a substantial distance beneath the surface of the earth, air conduits extending beneath the surface of the earth a substantial distance laterally from the ends of respective first named conduits, air conduits extending beneath the surface of the earth and connecting the outer ends of said laterally extending conduits, a permeable concrete casing incasing said conduits, and perforate water conveying conduits imbedded in said casing and extending along substantially the entire length of said air conduits.

NORMAN J. URQUHART. 

